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Sokar Pattern Stormbird
Legion during the Scouring of Prospero]] The Sokar Pattern Stormbird is a super-heavy, dedicated Adeptus Astartes attack lander and is one of the many variants of the Stormbird that dates back to the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras. It served as a high-durability orbital assault craft and as a mobile bastion or firebase that could land a Space Marine strike force and withstand heavy ground fire while its cargo of troops and war machines disembarked to press the attack. The Sokar Pattern design features all-round gun turrets and dense composite armour plating comparable to that of a main battle tank and is further protected by Void Shield generators which can be extended to protect disembarking troops and war machines. Multiple thruster units ensure that even if several engines are damaged, the Sokar will remain airworthy. History Legion during the Scouring of Prospero]] The Sokar Pattern Stormbird was developed from the various Warhawk and Nephoros-class Stormbird assault transports utilised by the Yndonesic Bloc during the Unification Wars on Terra, and were later adapted by the Emperor for His early Space Marine Legions. The Sokar Pattern itself was one of the later patterns of Imperial spacecraft developed during the Great Crusade and was used as the design precursor to the smaller, more widely produced Thunderhawk Gunship. It was conceived as a specialised, high-durability orbital assault craft -- almost a mobile bastion and firebase -- which could land a Space Marine strike force and withstand heavy ground fire while its passengers forced a landing zone. To this end, the Sokar's design features all-around gun turrets and particularly dense composite armour plating comparable to a main battle tank. It is further protected by Void Shield generators which it can extend to protect disembarking troops and war machines. Multiple thruster units ensure that even if several engines are damaged, the Sokar is a power if somewhat ungainly flyer. The howl these huge engines make is quite distinctive, even over the din of battle, and along with the bloodshed that followed its appearance it has earned the Sokar the informal name of the "Death Bird" among the Imperialis Auxilia. In the 41st Millennium All but a legend by the final years of the 41st Millennium, no new examples of the Stormbird or any of its many variants have been constructed in almost a millennia, for much of the technology that allows such a behemoth to function is no longer understood. With armour as thick as the largest of the Imperium's main battle tanks and the craft mounting an array of Void Shield generators, the Sokar is all but impervious to ground fire short of silo-mounted defence lasers and can unleash a significant battery of defensive weaponry. Armament Legion during void operations]] The Sokar Pattern Stormbird's standard armament includes five ball turret-mounted twin-linked Lascannons, two on each side of the spacecraft, and three hull-mounted twin-linked Heavy Bolters. The twin-linked Lascannons can be replaced with Quad Heavy Bolters depending on the needs of a particular mission. The craft also carries up to six Dreadstrike Missiles under its wings, which can be replaced with either a single Macro-bomb Cluster payload or an advanced targeting sensor array that enables the Sokar to serve as a targeting relay for orbital strike craft, allowing precise strikes from the edge of space in close support of assault operations. It is also equipped with particularly dense armoured ceramite plating, and is further protected by a series of Void Shield generators which it can extend to protect disembarking troops and war machines. Unit Composition *'1 Relic Sokar Pattern Stormbird (41st Millennium Only)' *'1 Legion Sokar Pattern Stormbird (31st Millennium Only)' Wargear A standard Sokar Pattern Stormbird is armed and equipped with: *'4 twin-linked Lascannons' *'2 twin-linked Heavy Bolters (Wing-mounted)' *'1 twin-linked Heavy Bolters (Rear Hull-mounted)' *'Hellstrike Battery (Hellstrike Missiles)' *'Armoured Ceramite Plating' *'Machine Spirit' *'2 Void Shields' Horus Heresy Wargear During the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy eras, the Sokar Pattern Stormbirds of the Legiones Astartes featured different weapons loadout options than those few still found during the 41st Millennium. A standard Legion Sokar-pattern Stormbird is armed and equipped with: *'4 twin-linked Lascannons' *'2 twin-linked Heavy Bolters (Wing-mounted)' *'1 twin-linked Heavy Bolters (Rear Hull-mounted)' *'6 Dreadstrike Missiles' *'Armoured Ceramite Plating' *'Machine Spirit (artificial intelligence)' *'2 Void Shields' A Legion Sokar Pattern Stormbird may replace all six of its Dreadstrike Missiles with the following: *'Macro-bomb Cluster Payload' *A Legion Sokar Pattern Stormbird may replace any of its ball turret-mounted twin-linked Lascannons for the following: *'Quad Heavy Bolters' A Legion Sokar Pattern Stormbird may be upgraded with the following abilities: *'Orbital Strike' - The Sokar carries additional wing-mounted ordnance of prodigious firepower in addition to its defensive turrets, and can also be equipped to serve as a targeting relay for orbital strike craft, allowing shatteringly precise strikes from the edge of space in close support of its assault operations. Transport Capacity The Sokar Pattern Stormbird has a cavernous transport bay that can hold up to 50 Space Marines at a time. The spacecraft can alternatively carry up to 5 Dreadnoughts of any type; Jump Pack-equipped infantry; Rapier batteries; Space Marine Assault Bikes or Jetbikes; a Rhino armoured transport; or a mixed force of all of the above. Infantry carried by the Sokar could disembark from either the sides of the craft, or the large rear ramp, all of which were protected by the vehicle's turrets. Adeptus Mechanicus Technical Specifications Sources *''Imperial Armour Index: Forces of the Adeptus Astartes'' (8th Edition), pg. 40 *''The Horus Heresy - Book Five: Tempest'' (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh, pg. 217 *''The Horus Heresy - Book Seven: Inferno'' (Forge World Series) by Alan Bligh, pp. 20-21, 34-35, 39, 98-99, 190, 196-197, 232 *''The Horus Heresy: Legiones Astartes - Age of Darkness Army List'' pg. 92 *''Horus Rising'' (Novel) by Dan Abnett *''False Gods'' (Novel) by Graham McNeill *''Dark Disciple'' (Novel) By Anthony Reynolds *''Garro: Oath of Moment'' (Audio) by James Swallow *''Garro: Legion of One'' (Audio) by James Swallow *''I Am Slaughter - Book One: The Beast Arises Series'' (Novel) by Dan Abnett *''Forge World - Space Marine Sokar-pattern Stormbird'' *''Forge World - Stormbird & Imperialis Landing Pad'' *''Forge World - Stormbird & Betrayal at Calth'' *''Forge World - Downloads: Sokar Pattern Stormbird Rules'' Gallery SokarStormbird0001.png|A Sokar Pattern Stormbird of the Imperial Fists Space Marine Legion SokarStormbird0003.PNG|A Sokar Pattern Stormbird of the World Eaters Legion with a Deimos Rhino disembarking down its rear ramp SW Stormbird.jpg|A Space Wolves Legion Sokar Pattern Stormbird, Ever-hungry Hawk of Aelle SokarStormbird0000.png|A Sokar Pattern Stormbird of the World Eaters Space Marine Legion SokarStormbird0002.png|A Sokar Pattern Stormbird of the Imperial Fists Space Marine Legion es:Stormbird Sokar Category:S Category:Aircraft Category:Chaos Category:Chaos Aircraft Category:Chaos Space Marines Category:Chaos Space Marine Legions Category:Chaos Vehicles Category:Imperial Aircraft Category:Imperial Spacecraft Category:Imperial Vehicles Category:Imperium Category:Spacecraft Category:Space Marine Vehicles Category:Space Marines Category:Vehicles